Detroiters chop it up on LeBron's Heat

Spurs lead Heat 3-1 in NBA Finals

DETROIT - You can hear all the chatter in Detroit barbershops on this Friday the 13th, including my shop, Sporty Cutz on W. 7 Mile Road.

For some, it's pure horror what has happened to LeBron James and the Miami Heat. Yes, LeBron has plenty of fans in Motown.

And for others, it's heaven on Earth. There are just as many Detroiters who can't stand the Heat's Big 3.

The Heat, who were blown out at home by the San Antonio Spurs for the second straight game on Thursday night, have led on their home court for just one minute and 31 seconds out of 96 minutes of play at AmericanAirlines Arena.

Yep. The Heat led Game 4 for just 68 seconds. In Game 3, where they were run off the court as well, Miami had the lead for just 23 seconds.

The not-suitable-for-framing performance has put this self-engineered, free-agent dream team on the brink.

They now trail the best-of-seven series, 3-to-1.

Oh yes, LeBron fans are making a list of others to blame when the Heat have to return all that confetti back to Party City.

No team in NBA Finals history has ever comeback from a 3-1 deficit. Hence, the Heat appear done, in place to lose their second championship in four years.

Worse, and more importantly, it appears the Heat won't go down in history as something to marvel at and behold, as many thought they would do when they were assembled in controversial fashion four years ago.

Winning two of four titles is an also-ran move, especially when three supremely talented players join forces, all in their prime, with the hope of winning six or seven championships in a row, at least that's what LeBron said.

Now, it appears, they won't even get to the magical three-peat, a feat many haven't accomplished, and one that separates you from the championship pack.

Heat president Pat Riley, who owns the trademark on "Three-Peat", won't even be able to cash in.

NBA America hasn't won anything yet. The Spurs will have to nail down one more game. They have three chances, two of them in San Antonio.

Still, NBA America is winning.

Many NBA fans hated how this team was put together and felt it undermined the competitive balance of the league, making most teams mere fodder for LeBron and Company.

This wasn't greatness, it was gluttony.

Many hoped the Dr. Frankstein experiment wouldn't work at all, that somehow the basketball Gods wouldn't go along with the hijacking of the Association as we knew it. They hoped the Big 3 would fail to win a single ring together.

And after they lost to the Dallas Mavericks in 2011, their first season together, some had hope. But the Heat regrouped to win the last two titles, beating the Thunder and these Spurs.

Still, it was about 2014. This was the year LeBron and his buds could make a history-making impression in the league.

Even the Heat's harshest critics would have had to respect three championships in a row. It's just a hard thing to accomplish under any circumstances. In fact, only the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls have accomplished the three-peat.

After the Heat won Game 2 in San Antonio and got a split on the road, many experts thought the greatest story ever told was a few chapters away from being finished.

Instead, LeBron is living out his worst nightmare.

Sure, James has two titles and they can't be taken away from him. He won't go down as the best player ever to never to win big. Plus, winning two titles dismisses the "fluke factor" argument.

Still, James wanted to be special, Jordan-like. Don't forget that Jordan won three in a row - twice. MJ was 6-0 in NBA Finals and won all six MVPs.

Detroit has seen both Jordan and LeBron up close en route to greatness.

If James loses here, or should we say when, he will have actually lost more Finals than he won. Three in the L column and just two in the win column.

For sure, it will stop even Motown LeBron fans from putting him in the Jordan conversation of being the greatest of all time.

Rob Parker and Mark Wilson co-host Sports Night with Parker and The Man weeknights from 7-10pm on WDFN AM-1130 The Fan.

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